It
is one of the dishes that embodies the characteristics of rural areas across
the country’s three regions.

Recently,
the dish has cropped up as a specialty on restaurant menus because of its fresh
flavours that help to cool diners in hot weather, said Phạm Tuấn Hải, member
of the jury board of Master Chef Việt Nam.

Banana
flowers from low land areas are often violet in colour, while those from the
forests are red.

The
best banana flower is fresh with a dark red colour and covered with white
anther dust, said Hải.

“As
a chef, I’ve tasted many dishes but my favourite is banana flower salad made by
my mother, because it has a natural fragrance and flavour that I will never
forget,” Hải said, sharing his mother’s recipe for the dish.

“My
mother often cuts the flower into strips, before soaking them in salt water for
15-20 minutes so they don’t turn black. Then she lets them dry,” said Hải,
noting that she prepares all ingredients such as star fruit or green mango,
aromatic herbs, boiled pig’s ears and others before mixing them together.

Preparation: Thread cut banana flowers to be ready for the salad.

She
said she uses star fruit or strips of mango instead of vinegar because it helps
make the dish less sour.

“My
mother’s dish is not only of full of flavours, but also full of colours. The
violet of the banana flower, the red of chili, yellow of roasted peanuts, green
mango and star fruit,” Hải said. "The dish is not complete without a bowl
of sauce, including quality fish sauce, garlic, sugar and lemon."

“It
is very enjoyable because of the flavours of aromatic herbs, chilli, roasted
peanuts, crispy boiled pig’s ear,” Hải recalled.

Banana
flower salad is often eaten with grilled pancake.

Fresh flavours: Banana flower salad, a popular dish in Việt Nam.

“I
was assigned to grill the pancake over a charcoal pot instead of grilling it
over a fire because the cake shouldn’t be hard. So I was asked to grill it
until it turns yellow and is more fragrant,” Hải said.

It’s
not difficult to make the dish suitable for one’s own taste, but he said he
keeps to his mother’s recipe.

“I
don’t usually like making many changes, and over the past 30 years, my mother’s
dish has become so familiar to me,” Hải said, noting that he often prepares
the dish for big parties such as Lunar New Year festival when all family
members are present.

A
friend of mine, Trần Hằng Nga, who has lived in Australia for more than 20
years, said she often craves the dish.

“When
returning to Việt Nam, I often ask my relatives to make banana flower salad,”
she said, but added that she likes my food most because I asked my sister in
the mountainous province of Cao Bằng to send me several forest banana flowers
to make the salad for Nga.

Forest
banana flowers are much sweeter and softer than those grown in low land areas.

“I
can never forget the flavour from my childhood, and every time I taste the dish
it brings me back to my home land,” Nga said.

Apart
from being popular dishes for its unique and fresh flavours, banana flowers are
said to have nutritional and health benefits.

Dr
Hoàng Khánh Toàn, from Military Hospital 108’s Traditional Medicine
department, said banana flowers can treat coughs, dysentery, and depression, as
well as improve milk production in nursing mothers.

“It
is really useful for Vietnamese people, particularly for those in rural areas
where the plant is widely available. Thanks to banana flowers, many poor people
suffering from ailments have recovered without the need for expensive or
invasive treatment,” Toàn said.